Video: 'The Empire Strikes Back' trailer

(Saturday, May 17, 1980, 2:30 p.m. EDT) — Three years after the events of Star Wars, Imperial forces continue to pursue the Rebels in The Empire Strikes Back, an American epic space opera film that premiered this afternoon at a benefit premiere for Special Olympics at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Directed by Irvin Kershner, the film starred Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew and Frank Oz.